Fade
by Reincarnated Poet
Summary: When the decades turn and times change, Kagome is forced to come to terms with the consequences of her time traveling days, running from those consequences she finds that life is what you make of it when you're not willing to fade.
1. Chapter 1

Reincarnated Poet: Hello my freaky darlings! I know I have other things I could be working on besides this cross over but I do loves it so! And its pretty much complete, so I'm just awaiting your reviews. . Anyways, thanks loves!

Chapter One – Time is Subjective – 2,511

"The past is only reference. The future is only hope. Today is real."

~ Reverend Gyomay Kubose

The great lord of the western lands smiled tiredly down at his brother and the girl that he has had at his side for the last five hundred years. Woman, he corrected himself mentally. Even after all of these years, he still thought of her as a girl. She still looked it as well, he thought, his tired eyes closing for a moment. When his amber eyes were closed, he could picture the group that followed his annoying little brother around in that time.

It had been so long ago now that he hardly considered himself, or the two kneeling in front of him, as the same people. Sure, the man there was none other than his silver haired, half demon brother, but he was so much wiser now. Sesshomaru could stand to be in his presence...some of the time.

And Kagome, oh how the woman had grown in the last five hundred years. It made no sense to him, how her body hadn't aged and died like the exterminator and monks' had, but she was there as a constant companion and friend to his brother, all the same. She appeared as much as she did the day she had arrived in the past: wide eyed and beautiful. But now, she was much more. She stood nearly as tall as he had in his prime, just a few inches shorter than his brother had become. Her hips were wider and her breasts had grown slightly. Her lips were redder and her hair had, if it were possible, turned darker.

He opened his eyes and took in the appearance of the two in front of him. "Rise, InuYasha." He stated in as stern of a voice as he could manage in his age and illness. The inu youkai rose to his feet and glanced briefly from Sesshomaru to Kagome, who still knelt on the floor. "Relax, brother. I called you both here for different reasons, but they do intermingle. You too, miko, rise." Sesshomaru smiled as the girl stood, a frown on her features.

"You know my name Sesshomaru, use it please." The demon lord smiled again and laughed weakly.

"Of course, my dear, Kagome." The miko smiled again and he returned his stare to his brother. "InuYasha, I am sure you have realized that I am ailing, very much in the same respect as our grandfather ailed. You would not have known him, but I was there, for the final years. I have a few years left to me, but now it is time for the title of 'Lord' to be passed."

"You mean?" InuYasha was hesitant to interrupt his brother, but a spark of his old cockiness was there. "You mean you're about to kick the bucket and I get all your power?" He smirked until Kagome rapped him on the back of the head.

"That's no way to speak to the ill." She murmured and bowed her head at the lord. "Continue, please."

"That's alright, Kagome. He wouldn't be the heir to this position if he wasn't the person he is today." Sesshomaru sighed and stood with care and grace. "Come, we have much to discuss, Inuyasha. You as well Kagome." The two followed, slowly as the silver haired youkai walked them down a hall way into a more comfortable room than they had previously occupied.

The ageing lord sank into a velvet couch and gestured at two chairs in front of him. The once shard hunting pair obliged him quickly. "Now, InuYasha. You know that with the title of lord and being the last heir available, the line must continue." Sesshomaru glanced carefully to the miko as her cheeks tinted red. InuYasha glanced with him and lowered his head.

"Maybe we should talk about this in private first, brother?" InuYasha asked, straining the word brother.

"She's stood there, by your side, for five hundred years, brother, she has the right to know that she will no longer be allowed to do as such." Sesshomaru again gauged the girl's expression. Her cheeks were no longer pink but her eyes were widened with shock.

"What?" She whispered. The words were barely heard, even by the demonic dogs' ears. "You, would throw me out, Sesshomaru? After all of these years I was by both of your sides?" Her voice rose in pitch until she was yelling.

"No," Sesshomaru quieted her with a wave of his hand. "InuYasha is the heir to a demonic throne, my dear. A throne held by a female inu-youkai and a male inu-youkai. I'm sure you're beginning to see the problem here?" Sesshomaru's eyes studied Kagome's for a moment, and upon seeing the realization dawn in them, let his gaze move to his brother.

"So, you'll force her to leave because I might or might not take a mate?" InuYasha asked, voice quiet.

"No, InuYasha, but a lady of the western lands, and true mate to an inu demon, will not permit another woman to be as close to your heart as Kagome is. If she stays here, she risks death." Sesshomaru had secretly prayed over the years that the two would either mate or fight so fiercely that the woman left his brother for good, but to his dismay, neither had occurred. Now it fell to him to make sure his brother stood proudly as a demon of his stature, but also held to the necessities and duties of a Inu Lord.

"She's been here so long, Sesshomaru!" InuYasha reverted to his brother's full name. "Her family will be gone. She has nowhere else to go to." InuYasha glanced back at the woman who was now incredibly silent at his side.

"No, no, InuYasha," Sesshomaru spoke. "She cannot, for her own healthy and safety stay here." He sighed deeply and felt the rattle in his lungs. "The longer you drag this out, the more difficult it will be for the both of you. I will give you tonight to say your goodbyes." Sesshomaru rose to his feet, InuYasha rising with him – all dignities demanded that anyone lesser rise when the Lord entered or exited – but Kagome kept her seat.

"Your brother is correct, as always, InuYasha." Kagome said, she looked up, and where Sesshomaru expected to see tears, her eyes were dry. "It is time I let you grow." She rose to her feet and exited in front of the demon lord.

"Kagome!" InuYasha called after her, but she was gone. "Damn it!" He growled and took a step toward the door, but a firm but gentle hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Leave her, InuYasha, she won't leave without a goodbye." Sesshomaru sighed and removed his hand. "I am sorry, brother, for the loss of your companion, but it is how the life of a demon lord must be lived. I sent Rin away when she was mature to ensure her safety."

"You sent Rin away because she was no longer a child that you could buffalo!" InuYasha demanded. "You took no mate, no lover, to endanger her."

"No, but you will." Sesshomaru's words rang with a finality that rivaled that found carved on a tombstone. "There are to be...suitors in the next week. You will take of one of their scents and it will no longer be in your control." InuYasha growled and again moved to the door to find Kagome. "Be honorable, my brother. Do not take what you don't plan to keep."

"You think I don't know that?" He asked but only received a somber smile as his answer. "Fine."

"She must leave by the morning. When you find her, send her to speak with me. There are still matters to be discussed." Sesshomaru sighed and felt the all too familiar weariness creeping into his legs. "I am retiring to my chambers; have her meet me there."

"When we are finished talking." InuYasha confirmed. "But not until then. She will not leave until we have fully discussed all options."

Sesshomaru had only just taken his dinner before a light rapping came at his door. He did not rise as the door opened without his call of acceptance and knew who would be waiting on the other side of the thick carved mahogany. Only two people were permitted into his chamber without ascent, and his brother never was as polite to knock.

"I am surprised that you have finished your goodbyes with my brother already, my dear." He spoke with his back still to the door, and the raven haired woman who stood there.

"I've been avoiding him." Came the reply. He winced at the words, not for their meaning but for their tone. "I wished to speak to you in private, learn all of the rules, so to speak."

"Kagome, the rules are for your own benefit." He spoke as if talking to a child. "He will take a mate. It is not only for the female that I ask you to leave."

"Who do you ask me for then?" She was by his side when she spoke this time, and he nearly swore. She had learned much in her time in his castle, perhaps too much for her own happiness.

"I ask you for my brother. He will take a mate, and as the blood call demands, his spirit and his energy will become so dependent on her own that he will no longer be the same InuYasha. He will be as he was meant to be." Sesshomaru paused. His next words would be the hardest to say. "He will forget about you, my dear. It will hurt him far more knowing that you are here yet he can no longer attend to you. If you leave, it will be easier on him, after some time." Again he waited for tears, but his nose, still as sharp as ever, was un-assailed.

"Where will I go, my Lord?" Her voice was different now; she was addressing him as a vassal, as a servant.

"Where do you wish to go?" He asked back with the voice of a master. "Return to your home. Your home, not someone else's." He sighed and turned to her. "Kagome, you will be happier where you can start fresh and live the life you were intended to live."

She glared at him briefly before a blank look took up her face. "My past knows only here now, Sesshomaru. I can look forward to no future where my past can not be known, remembered, and used."

"My dear, the past is only reference." His voice was solid as if reciting something from memory. "The future is only hope." He reached out a clawed finger and brought her chin up from her chest. "Today is real. Do not fear for what will happen years from now. Do not dwell on the past too long. Take only today into consideration, as it is all that matters."

She smiled at him sadly. "Did you think, Sesshomaru that I had not been home in all these long years? Mind you, I haven't returned in some time."

"So you will be more accustomed to your time, my dear. Go there, live you life as a normal human should." He smiled but that grin faded as she shook her head.

"The last I was there, Sesshomaru, was fifty years after the death of Naraku." She clasped her hands in her lap. "I could not even climb from the well. When I appeared on that side, fifty years after the first I disappeared, it was as though I had stayed there and aged the same as I would have. My skin was deathly pale and my veins stood from my skin. It I were to return there now, I fear for what I might find."

Of all of the things Sesshomaru expected to hear from the young miko, this was far from the most expected. "But here, you don't age. Before you didn't age." His eyes were wider than Kagome had ever seen them.

"I don't understand it either. My guess is that the magic of the well was not meant to be used for as long as I have used it. I don't age here because technically I haven't even been born to age yet."

"If you return to your era now, as a human..." Sesshomaru paused. "As a human, you will most certainly be ashes at the bottom of your well."

"I have had many years longer to live than most girls of my time." Kagome turned slowly away from the demon lord. "Maybe when I return I will find myself a teenager again." She walked to the door. "I will leave at dawn, my Lord, you nor your brother will see me before I go." She gripped the wooden frame in her hand and paused, unsure of how to bid the ancient lord farewell.

"This Sesshomaru," Sesshomaru began, reverting back to his informal mode of speech that Kagome was so used to hearing before times of peace set in. "This Sesshomaru hoped to receive a slightly better farewell than the words 'good-bye'." A broad smile lit up Kagome's face and she had crossed the room before Sesshomaru even noticed her move. He was either getting older than he thought, or she had gained more skill than those in the castle gave her credit for.

He sighed as she carefully hugged his weakening form. "I'm going to miss you, Sessho." She said, and his nose twitched at the scent of salt in the air. The human girl would never make sense to him. She cried when she said goodbye to him, but when she walked from the room earlier, fully intending to leave her best friend behind, she had not shed a tear.

"I'll miss you too. Now, go gather your belongings, anything you may need. I have someone I wish you to speak with before you leave this time. He may know of a means to assure you pass to your time healthy and well." She moved to the door quickly, but paused.

"If it's all the same to you, would you keep this from-"

"Of course. Now, in the morning a woman will be at your door she will show you the way to the man I want you to meet. She will not go with you, but you will be put well on your way."

"Thank-you...and good-bye, brother." Before the taiyoukai could respond, the girl was through the door and long gone down the hallway. He smiled after her and returned to his room. It would be a sleepless night, with several more to follow, until he was no longer worried for the girl that called him brother.

He settled in and let his mind wander. It would be several long weeks after she left, of attempting to find the correct female for his brother, but the stubborn dog would no doubt express disinterest in anyone he came across, so he would have to be baited. That was alright with Sesshomaru, it gave his troubled mind something to focus on.


	2. Chapter 2

Reincarnated Poet: Hello my freaky darlings! 'Tis me again, but who else did you really expect? This story is taking on a life of its own it seems and I am not completely sure if it is to end happily as the fairy tales, or somberly as life often does. But I am speaking of the highway when I am sitting at the bus stop. The last chapter was, in my opinion, the hardest to write because it needed to really set you into the story, now this chapter needs only tell the tale and keep you reading. Tah!

Chapter Two – A Two Sided Coin – 3,137

"The hardest thing in life: letting go of what you thought was real."

~Unknown

Kagome woke early the next morning, her eyes were red but the puffiness of crying into her pillow had left. She stretched and dressed for the day, completely forgetting the fact that she was to leave until she saw the large yellow back sitting at the end of her bed. She had kept the old thing as sort of a memento, but now it was to be put to use once more.

Fighting back more tears, she shouldered the pack. It was no longer as large as she remembered, or perhaps she was larger than the pack remembered. Never the less, it was on her back and she was walking toward the door before she remembered that Sesshomaru had sent a woman to stay outsider her door that night. She opened the wooden door, and there, as she expected, was a young girl. She was slightly younger than Kagome would have imagined Sesshomaru to have sent to her door for such an errand.

"My Lord has sent me to show you the way to The Den, please follow me and listen closely." Her speech was quiet and quick as if she were whispering a secret.

"Yes, I would like to be leaving before the sun rises." Kagome studied the girl as they walked down the stone hallway toward a large altar room.

"We will leave from the East, my Lady. You will pass through the surrounding forest rather quickly, however there is a river on the other side that may prove difficult to cross this time of year."

"Is there a bridge? I should hope to have passed there before anymore rain swells it from its bed." They both passed through the room and out the door, into the sunlight.

"No, the Lord is very protective of his domain, and while those of the Den are not enemies..."

"They are not friend." Kagome finished. "What way do I take after I cross the bridge?"

"You will continue east for some time. Those of the Den will find you, my Lady, not the other way around. You must carry this on your person." The girl held up a small jeweled comb. "Wear it in your hair." Kagome ducked and allowed the girl to push her dark hair back from her face and hold it in place. "Go, my lady, you will leave the forest by midday if you hurry."

"You rush me from my room to the door. How quickly does the Lord demand my departure?" She asked, fully knowing the response.

"I am not to allow you back into the castle, my Lady. The Lord suggested that you leave early, before Master InuYasha rose from his chambers." Kagome nodded her head.

"Yes, of course." She smiled at the girl.

"Do you know when the first of the Master's suitors will be arriving?" She tried to keep her inquiry just curiosity, but she failed as her voice wavered.

"My Lady of the Wooded North will be arriving at midday." She said, completely oblivious to Kagome's pain. "The Lord is calling me, my Lady, please take your leave." The girl bowed but waited for Kagome to leave.

"I have one more question. No servant has ever called me Lady in this castle. Why the change this morning?" Kagome was genuinely curious now.

"The Lord said that I was to escort Kagome Lady of All Times from the castle. He himself created the title, my Lady, now please go. I will be severely punished if the Master wakes soon enough to track you." With tears threatening to make themselves known, Kagome bowed her head.

"Thank-you, child." Kagome turned her back to the castle and was gone into the forest. The girl stood watching her go, her heart heavy with the knowledge that she would never see the Lady again. She had said goodbye to the woman before, when she first because a young woman, and had hoped to be reunited with the Lady Kagome that she had seen so many years in the past. For the little girl that had shown her out of the castle, was none other than the little girl Rin, who had traveled with the Lord all of those hundreds of years ago.

"Rin will never forget you, Lady Kagome, no matter how many lives she lives, or how many identities she holds." The girl blinked her eyes and hurried back into the castle. It would not do to have Lord Sesshomaru angry with her the first time she returned, reincarnated into a new body.

Kagome walked quickly through the woods, trying desperately to put as much space between herself and InuYasha that she could without fleeing. She refused to be chased from the castle as if she were some villain on the run. She would walk at her own pace from that place that she so much wanted to return to, but that pace would be as quick as her pride would allow.

A deep sigh escaped her lips and she let her mind wander to this Den that she was traveling to. She had only ever heard a location called a Den when Koga and his wolves had lived and traveled among them. Was she headed for a wolf den? Perhaps it was Koga's own or possibly one of his children's. It would be nice to see him again. Maybe she could make her life there, for she had little intention of returning to her time to sit at the bottom of a well as dust.

It pained her to admit, but she was scared of going through the well, passing through time, and simply ending her existence. If she were going to die, she much preferred to see it happen. To feel the blade in her ribs, the rope around her neck, the arrow in her chest. Most would give anything for the painless death that passing through the well would give to her, but she had always been afraid of things she couldn't see. Plus for all of the years she had lived...she was still just a teenage girl in most respects.

The sun was just reaching its peak for the day when she stumbled out of the wooded area and nearly fell down the sheer drop that lead into the river. The girl had failed to mention that when she was out of the woods she would be in the river. The treetops hung over the river on both sides, and in places they met to form one solid canopy. "God, they want to kill me." She sighed and began walking up and down the water's edge.

She had been walking for some time before she spotted a grey clump ahead of her along the edge of the water. As she approached she realized that the clump was actually a person, an elderly woman, to be exact, fishing in the rapids. "Hello." She greeted the woman, but she simply nodded in her direction. "I was wondering..."Kagome walked up and sat down by the woman, sensing no danger from the aged relic.

"You were wondering if this old woman knew of a way across this river." The woman interrupted. "There is no such crossing for those who cannot see it themselves." The woman's voice was rough and cracked as she spoke.

"I just want to know where to look." Kagome took an immediate dislike to the woman and she stood up quickly. "For an old lady you're a little grouchy, aren't you?"

"You cannot see what is right in front of you now, you will never see the way across this old river." The woman rose to her feet, but her movements were not those of an old woman. She moved quickly and easily, drawing the pole from the water and placing it along the ground. The woman looked over her and stared at the comb in her hair.

"What?" Kagome asked, uncomfortable with the scrutiny.

"You bare the nymph child's comb." The woman grazed her fingers over the shining metal of the hair ornament. Kagome held still and let the woman caress the metal.

"If you tell me where the bridge is, you can have it." She said, thinking that maybe this was the reason she was to wear the jewelry.

"No, you will need it yet, child of the light, you will need that pendant yet." The woman laughed, but it was not the rough laugh of an aged woman or the light tinkering of a young woman, but the deeper chuckle of a man. "You still don't see the world around you, when it is shown plainly to you. Did his presence in your life do naught for your other sight?" The voice was more familiar now, clearly male.

"Whose presence?" She asked, "What does this have to do with the Den?" The woman was pacing back and forth now, her features becoming clearer the longer Kagome studied them. Her hair wasn't gray but a russet brown, and her skin was not marred with scars and wrinkles but clear save for a small scar below his left eye, for now it was clear that the woman pacing before him was male.

"You didn't learn anything, nothing? You didn't learn to look with more than your eyes?" She growled at the man.

"Yes, I know how to look with my energy!" She snapped.

"That's not what I meant." He turned and stared straight at her. "Look for more than what you believe to see." She stared at him a moment longer and her vision seemed to blur. There in front of her, she could swear she saw familiar young eyes, smiling.

"Shippou?" She asked and the man smiled widely.

"Now you can find the bridge." He laughed and in an instant he was gone, leaves falling to the ground where he had stood moment before.

"Shippou!" She yelled after him, but it was of no use, the kitsune was gone, if it had even been him. "God damn it kitsune get back here!" She tried again but her only response was a low chuckling. She spun around but he was no where in sight. She almost cried. She hadn't seen the kit in three hundred years. He had gone to live with others that could teach him how to fully use his abilities. Sesshomaru had personally seen that he find a family that would not overly coddle him, but would not be too harsh. If he was here, did that mean that the Den was where Sesshomaru had sent him? 

She shook the thought from her head. It would be nice to see the kit again, but it would not be a solution to her problem. She could not place her problems on the kitsune's head. He had said she could find the bridge now, but as she looked up and down the riverside, there was no bridge.

"Shippou was a kitsune." She started talking the problem out. "They are masters of illusion." She approached the spot where he had left the fishing pole. It was pointing out over the edge of the ground, where it should have been teetering dangerously, but it appeared secure. "So, if he said to look for what I don't think is real then...look for a bridge where there isn't one?" Her head began hurting and she was squinting up and down the riverbank but nothing appeared.

Finally growing frustrated enough, she walked toward the fishing pole and kicked it outward into the water, but it didn't simply fall as it should have, it slid forward before falling sideways. "Okay, I can't see the bridge." She mused and stepped right up to the edge, where the pole had fallen. "So, if I just trust that its there..." She toed the air in front of her, but nothing seemed to be there.

She huffed angrily and stepped backward. "That's it." She said and walked angrily forward and over the ledge. She fell. Quickly. There was no bridge under her feet to catch her. A squeak escaped her lips as she prepared to hit the cold springtime water. The cold rush never came.

She was kneeling on the other side of the river, shaking and heart pumping faster than was healthy. "Shippou?" She called out, trying to find her savior.

"The kit told you too much. Confused you." She spun around on her knees and there stood a little boy. He couldn't be any more than five, but his voice was older, refined, and somehow soft. "There was no bridge but if you looked above you, there is an overpass of sorts. The branches run together, thick and wide." Kagome stood on shaking legs.

"You're telling me he could have just said 'look up', but instead he gives me some cryptic crap about looking past what I think is real?" Kagome fumed as she shook the moisture from the bottoms of her pants. No matter whether she was actually in the water or not, the spray had thoroughly soaked the lower third of her body.

"That's against the rules." The child said, stepping forward his eyes focusing just above hers. "The Leader would have severely punished him. Although he'll still be punished for leaving you here to drown." The boy stepped forward again and rose a hand toward her. "This was given to a girl many years ago. She was brought to the Den by the lord of the castle to the west. Do you know of him?" He let his fingers dance over the rubies in the jeweled comb.

"Sesshomaru." Kagome said quietly. It hurt again in her chest, but with the appearance of Shippou and this current boy, her mind was elsewhere.

"Lord Sesshomaru." The boy corrected. "He would be rather...irritable if he heard a woman calling him simply Sesshomaru." A smirk appeared on the boy's young features and for a moment he looked older.

"Lord Fluffy would get over it." She quipped, not liking being corrected by such a young boy. "Thanks for the help and everything, but I really need to be going. I'm looking for your leader. If you cannot lead me to him, please let me be." The boy smiled widely.

"You are quite rude for someone who needs help."

"And you are quite full of yourself for someone so young." She shot back, this seemed to please the boy though.

"Alright, I'll take you to him, but be advised, woman, you are dealing with the Lord of Thieves, Youko Kurama, when you deal with our leader." Kagome rolled her eyes at the title.

"Of course, and did you know there used to be this little girl back at a village I once lived in that believed herself to be Lady Queen of all the world." Kagome smirked at the anger that quickly flashed across the boy's face. "At title is nothing if given to yourself."

"And who speaks so freely of titles? A lost woman in the forest who was lucky enough to come by an heirloom?" He paced a few steps, angrily before calming down slightly. "Your title, woman?"

"The girl who gave me this called me Kagome Lady of All Times." Kagome recalled the title that the girl had burnt into her memory through her heart. It had pulled on some very tender strings when she had spoken the full name. "The Lord Sesshomaru of the Western Lands that you suggest whose full title I use bestowed it upon me through a young servant girl. We were friends, the Lord and I."

"Sesshomaru takes no friends, Kagome Lady of All Lies." The boy growled. "But you do hold the heirloom, you will be delivered unto the Lord. At such time that you are under the light of our forest and can no longer lie, will you be trusted." The boy walked into the woods, taking no beaten path, but Kagome kept pace, used to long outings with InuYasha. She smiled at the memory of their escapades. Surely he would have simply jumped the river than had nearly claimed her life.

The walk through the forest was long and quiet, and after several hours, Kagome began seeing shadows moving on the edges of her vision. Eventually, they came upon a village full of men, women, and children all of different ages. Some blatantly wore their tails and ears while others hid them. The boy lead her to a tent where he held the flap open and waited for her to enter. She glanced around and, seeing that no one took notice of her, but watched the boy almost exclusively, she entered. It was pitch black and she fumbled in the dark until a match was struck.

The boy was at a table in the middle of the room. Two torches were supported on either side of the oval table, but nothing else sat in the room save for a thimble sized glass and a small blue glass pitcher. The liquid inside was perfectly clear and seemed to have an inner light of its own. The boy reached out and filled the small glass before handing it to her.

She took it but did not drink. "The Leader will not see you until you have drank. That will force truth from you lips, woman, so take care not to attempt to lie once you have met him." Her gestured for her to drink, and tentatively she sniffed it before drinking the mixture. It was surprisingly cold, and tasted clean and clear.

"Alright, where is this leader?" She asked. "I have drank your little serum, not let me speak with him."

"First, woman, give me your title." He said again, his back to her.

"Kagome Lady of All Times." The boy turned around quickly.

"And it was given to you by Sesshomaru?" He asked, dropping the title of 'Lord'. Kagome simply nodded and the boy laughed. "Well," the boy said and without looking, poured the thimble full again. "Cheers." He said and drank the liquid.

Almost immediately, Kagome's vision of the boy seemed to bleed in all directions. Silver hair sprouted from his head, taking over the brown that once resided there. His body stretched up, and several silver tails seemed to explode into life behind him. "The Light of my people shows us the truth in people as well as forcing them to speak it." The man stepped around her and stopped at the door.

"Wait!" Kagome said, "I need to speak with your leader." Laughter rung in the tent.

"The hardest thing in life is letting go of what you thought was real. Will you be able to face facts, in the end?" He pulled the drapery back and stared into the sunlight. "Youko Kurama, at your service." He pivoted into a mocking bow and exited the tent.


	3. Chapter 3

Reincarnated Poet: You guys are so great! I'm glad you're liking this so much, I was a bit worried as its not my main meme. Hopefully I can continue to please!

Chapter Three - To Achieve an End - 4,035

"Now that it's all over, what did you really do yesterday that is worth mentioning?"

Coleman Cox

Kagome had stared after him for mere moments before she was through the heavy drape that closed off the little dark room from the rest of the world. "What?" She yelled when she saw him walking quickly through the crowds of people, who parted in his wake. She watched as they quickly moved out of his path, their eyes watching him with respect—or was that fear?

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" She yelled running forward, she was upon him before she even knew she had moved. "I said-" She reached a hand out and spun him around. His eyes were wide as he spun around, but she didn't have time to finish her sentence as a blade was held at her throat by one of the men in the crowd. As she glanced around, she could see that several others, both women and children, had all drawn some form of weapon and were willing to use it. "I was talking to you." She finished.

"And I thought I made it clear, woman, that I was not going to speak with you." He growled out after he surpasses his surprise. He glanced at the crowd, and gave his head a brief shake. All the weapons disappeared quickly. "Follow me to the edge of my village, I will see you safely from my lands, but after that, you're jewelry will no longer protect you."

"What? This?" She pulled the comb from her hair and held it out. "Take it, I don't need a token to protect me." The kitsune glanced at the hair piece and smiled widely before picking in from her grasp. His smile darkened as his eyes darted up from the jeweled piece to her eyes. "Accepted." He growled and she was unconscious on the ground before she felt the pain explode in the back of her head.

"Let her go damn it! She was under my protection." She heard ringing in her ears that sounded suspiciously like words. "

"She returned the gift. She has played her hand and in turn allowed me to play mine. She will be judged by the council, boy, and there is nothing either of us can do to change that." That voice was familiar, and its smug vocalization had her growling in the back of her throat.

"You're the head of the council, hell, you are the council! You are judge, jury, and executioner, and I know where this is going. I've seen it before." Her eyes opened, that was Shippou's voice. That was Shippou's voice, swearing. Her eyes widened at that realization and she spoke on instinct.

"You had better watch your language young man." She sat up quickly, and her head swam as she covered her mouth partly to prevent herself from being sick and partly from what she had just said.

"Lady Kagome!" There was his voice and her eyes sought it out. It was dark where she was, but she could still see her surroundings. The floor was covered in dirt, but there was a fine layer of stones underneath that became walls only a few feet from where she sat. The stones towered high above her head and as she glanced up, it appeared as though she were almost in a well.

"Shippou?" She called toward the opening.

"Its me, I'll get you out of there. Promise!" There were more words exchanged above her head, but she ignored them and began to inspect the walls. They were by no means smooth and several placed jutted out. She glanced up. It was the same all the way up. Smiling she began her ascent up the rock wall.

Her arms were aching mere moments later but she was close to the top. By the time she was pulling herself over the last few feet of sheer wall by the strength in her arms, she was thanking any god that would present itself for the time she spent with the dog demons. They had toughened her both mentally and physically.

"Move! I want her out of there." Kagome heard as she fell over the ledge to the grass. There, on the other side of the poorly constructed well was her adopted kitsune and the one who called himself Lord of Thieves.

"Done, Shippou." She said, standing, and brushing off her legs, inspecting the few places that the rocks had been sharp enough to cut through both the material and her skin.

"You!" and "Kagome!" where cried at the same time as she was pulled into a tight hug.

"Okay, okay." She chided, pushing the aged Shippou off of her. "I'm happy to see you too." Her eyes were watching behind him, where the five tailed silver fox bristled.

"Woman, I did not say you could climb out of there." He growled and pulled Shippou by the shoulder away from her.

"You didn't say I couldn't and I am a bit pissed that you had me knocked out." An innocent smile graced his lips. "What is so funny?"

"I knocked you out. I didn't 'have it done'." He laughed for a moment. "But you will not get off as easily as all that. You ventured into the Den unprotected and uninvited. You will face trial." He appeared thoughtful for a moment. "Face trial or become a den mother. You already have a kit here." He mused for a moment. "Wouldn't that be quite a sight? Sesshomaru's companion, a mother in my den."

"Not hardly." Kagome spat quickly although the idea of living with her adoptive son again had some appeal to her nostalgia.

"She's human Kurama, she can't live here." Shippou said quietly, almost as if the fact saddened him.

"She wouldn't have to be." The Youko mused for a moment. "In fact, she's staying here. Our aging friend across the river won't like it much." A deep chuckle sounded from his throat. "Come on woman, I'll show you where you can set up your new home for now." Kagome growled.

"If you had ears to listen you incompetent idiot, I'm not staying here." Kagome almost laughed at the look that crossed Shippou's face. "I was sent here by Sesshomaru as a favor. He said someone here would be able to help me to go home, but I can see he was wrong." Kagome turned on her heals and called over her shoulder. "The great King of Thieves probably doesn't even know how to get me home anyway." A hiss behind her told her that her words were heard.

She had gotten a total of three feet before she nearly bumped into the white clad chest. "What?" she asked innocently.

"You will explain this issue you need solved and we will solve it. You will then leave here and never bother my people again." The kitsune growled and seized her wrist tightly.

"You will cease to treat me like a rag doll or a subservient slave girl." She growled right back and ripped her wrist from his grasp. He stared down at his empty hand for some time, but he didn't blow up or yell as she had expected him to, he simply nodded his head and turned on his heels.

"Alright, woman, let's get talking." He motioned for her to follow him and headed out into the forest, away from the village. "I trust you will be more at easy away from a large village of demons?" He asked almost too politely.

"Yes, I suppose." She replied, walking a few steps behind him and to his left. Most demons were ambidextrous, but she was willing to bet from his previous actions that he was predominately right handed. She would avoid that side of his body, if at all possible.

"You had a problem." He said after some time. The forest was growing darker, but there were still many hours of daylight left above its canopy.

"To fully explain it will require you to trust my word." She said and he nodded for her to continue. "I was born nearly five hundred years from now."

"You're a demon?" He interrupted, thinking she meant the past.

"Not that I know of." She laughed. It was always a possibility she supposed and she had often wondered over the long years what it would be like to be able to actually run like InuYasha did when he wasn't letting her keep up. "Let me finish. I was born nearly five hundred years in the future." She watched his reaction, but the only sign that he had heard her was a slight incline of the eye brows. "I first came to this land five hundred years ago, if you're old enough you will remember it as the time when Naraku ran rampant and the Shikon Jewel was shattered."

"Yes, I remember the hanyou bastard." Youko growled. "He killed many of my men. It was good when the dog killed him."

"I journeyed with InuYasha, with the group that destroyed Naraku." She paused again to judge his reaction but he only nodded. "I was the one who wished the jewel from existence."

At this he spun around and gripped her by the shoulders, staring at her suspiciously. "You?" He asked again and watcher her carefully. "You were the priestess that destroyed that gem?"

"Yes, I was." She answered as he studied her expression. After a few moments he seemed content and let her go to resume their walk.

"I decided to stay here, to live out my days with my companions, but after a time I discovered that I did not age as they did." He nodded his head as if this made sense. "Why?" She asked.

"Isn't it clear?" He asked but she only glared at him. "You haven't been born yet, so how can you truly age. Sure you could grow stronger through physical activity, but time will not take its toll on you, not until you have lived to the day of your birth. Then, who knows what might occur." He spoke as if this all made perfect sense. "How did you arrive here? I've heard tales of the Bone Eaters Well in InuYasha's forest. But there are other means of travel between times. Some of my race can even do it, out of their lifespan of course, we wouldn't take the risk of being trapped as our older or younger selves."

"I fell through the well." Kagome admitted, reluctantly. She laughed for a time, as she recalled that day.

"So it was a lack of grace that brought the one who destroyed my life's work." He mused out loud.

"Destroyed your life's work?" Kagome asked, suddenly worried about being alone in the forest with this demon.

"Oh, at the time I was furious, mind you, but I am over it now." He smirked in her direction. "I suppose I should thank you. It corrupted all it touched." He began walking again. "Accept you, that is. You know what you were called? In the forests and among those who saw the reason for it being destroyed?"

"Probably food." She mused. "Or hanyou lover." She laughed at this. "They would be correct on both counts."

"No," he said, stopping for a moment. "My...companions called you the Lady of Purity. I called you something else." He laughed deeply. "Though it had more of an angry reasoning behind it."

"Oh." She blushed. "What did you call me?"

"Arhm." He cleared his throat and made a series of hisses. "While it has no direct translation into your tongue," he smiled briefly. "There are a few choice words whose meaning is carried over. Cheating bitch as well as the feeling of not being worth the time and energy it would take to kill you, but as I said they were words said and thought in anger."

"Well." She said, and he waited for her wrath. If she tried to hit him, he could not be held accountable for his actions. "I guess...from your point of view...and I have been called worse things." She laughed.

"Are you satisfied with your titles, woman? I thought you had some question that was difficult." He smirked down as she glared at him.

"When I passed through the well nearly fifty years later, it was as though I had stayed there and aged. I was old and I barely had the power to return here." She sighed deeply.

"That also makes sense." He said. "You didn't wait for you lifetime to end there, if you were to return now, you might be in a new body, if you were reincarnated. You might be in limbo, or you may simply be nothingness. It is hard to know what lies in the future."

"Oh," she murmured. "Then there is no way for me to return there."

"I didn't say that." He corrected, "You could return but not as you are." He stopped and stretched his arms above his head. "It's getting late we will finish this discussion tomorrow." He yawned widely as she look around.

"We're not back at the village yet." She stated plainly.

"No," he answered and slid down a tree, his back leaning lightly against it as he landed on the ground.

"We're in the forest."

"Yes."

"We're sleeping in the forest."

"Yes."

"Umm...you're not going to kill me in my sleep?" She asked one final question.

"Well I was thinking about it." He said with dead seriousness and closed his eyes.

"What? Wait!" She growled at him, but light snores were already echoing in the air. She looked around the small area that they were in. It wasn't a clearing, and it looked more like a trail than anything she had seen all day. Grumbling under her breath about killer kitsunes who were bipolar, she too found a comfortable looking tree to curl up against.

"Woman." She heard a voice in her dreams that didn't quite belong there. She was sitting with InuYasha in the middle of a wide clearing. He looked sad for some reason and much older. His shoulders sagged and the skin around his eyes was drawn and lined.

"Woman." The voice came again and her eyes flew open to the real world. "'bout time." Youko growled as he leaned over her.

"Oh, shit!" She yelled and extended a hand out in front of her for protection. Had he been slower, he would have met the barrier she had thrown up to protect herself.

"Damn it, woman." He growled at the same time she yelled, "Jesus you idiot!"

"Whose Jesus?" He asked for a moment genuinely curious. "I'm not an idiot, come on we need to get back." He extended a hand down to help her up, which she ignored as she first gained her feet in a squat and then rose, slowly stretching out a night of sleeping on the ground.

"What time is it?" She asked out of instinct.

"Morning." He answered as if it were the simplest answer he had ever given. That was something she never had gotten used to over the years. When you woke up it was morning, when the sun was over head it was midday, and when it set it was night. There was no time of day.

"Yeah, of course." She said and began following him through the woods. "You said there were other ways, last night."

"Yes, there are but I am afraid that all of them will result in the same outcome." He laughed at her expression. "Is it really so bad here, you can go back to your dog and finish out your life span." He expected her to cheer up quickly at that thought, but when she increased her pace and said nothing, warning bells went off in his head. "What?"

"Sesshomaru is dying." She said as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

"So the dog is finally kicking the bucket...I should send flowers." He laughed heartily but stopped at her glare. "What? Sesshomaru was a bastard most of his life."

"Yes, yes he was." She agreed.

"But..." he added.

"But nothing he was an ass." She finished.

"But why are you still upset?" He seemed confused. "Even demons die. It's a natural step, one that we all must face one day. Although his does come early for his breed."

"He has left his brother as his heir." Kagome sighed, not ready to say his name. "There is no other heir at this time."

"So, afraid of the title of Lady of the West?" He mocked.

"No," She answered and kept walking. He stopped and stared after her, deciding it was best to ask the reasoning for her sadness later.

"Well, I was very serious earlier. You could stay, for a time, with your son." Youko said thoughtfully. "You are no demon you would have to wear some token of protection."

"Such as the comb." Kagome supplied.

"Yes such as the comb." He smiled. "I do believe that you would know the girl that gave it to you." He continued when she shook her head no. "Yes you do," he affirmed. "She was the reincarnation of a little girl that your young Shippou is...was quite taken with. Her death caused him much sadness. I do believe her name was Rin."

"Rin?" She asked in disbelief.

"Yes, the child that melted the heart of stone." He laughed. "Melted the kit right down to jelly too. That's why he was waiting at the river. He sensed the comb was near and thought she had returned to him. He was quite upset when he found it was you."

"Oh."

"Don't 'Oh' me woman, he was glad to see you, but he would have been more happy to see his lover again. They've been through this three times now. He's watched her die and be reborn three times. It is hard on him, but he waits." Kagome smiled at this. Her Shippou would be one to wait.

"I'm both sad and happy for them." She confided quietly.

"Yes I suppose, but they can truly say that they have something to live for and look forward to. They are married and mated every time on her eighteenth birthday. That will be in a few months." He mused. "That's why the kit is so bouncy. The Den will reek for weeks again." He scrunched up his nose and she looked at him questioningly.

"What?"

"Demons can...how to put this." He mused, "Demons can smell certain things such as bodily fluids." He groaned when she still didn't get it. "How about this approach...When a male demon and a female demon love each other very much..."

"Okay!" Kagome said probably a little too loud. Her face was beat red. "I don't want to think of my son like that, thank you very much."

"Well be happy you don't have to smell it." He laughed. "It's like that with all of the families in the Den though."

Now her nose was wrinkled in disgust. "I have one more question..." She quickly changed the subject. "About the time thing." He was silent and she took it as a go ahead to continue. "How would I have to change to go through the well?"

"Oh," He paused. "Anything that changed your blood. A blood bonding with a demon would work. A shift in your powers energy signature." He paused and looked up at the sky, thoughtful. "If you were pregnant." Again he paused. "Or mated." Another pause. "Or reborn, reincarnated." Another long pause. "I think that's it."

"Well..." she stretched out the word. "I can't change my blood or my energy signature. I don't plan on mating or becoming pregnant," she blushed at this. "What's a blood bonding?"

"A sharing of blood between two people, generally demons." He scratched his ear thoughtfully. "Sometimes lovers do it, but it comes with mating. It's a sign of great trust. Especially with demons. If a demon were to bond blood with a human, his or her life is tied to that human. If they die, the demon dies. It's because of this that it is very rare."

"Oh," she sighed. "Well then, I guess you're going to be stuck with me for a while." She laughed. "Sorry about that. I won't stay long."

"Where will you go?" He asked her, with genuine curiosity.

"Well...I am a member of a wolf pack; I suppose I could go live with them. Or settle in a human village as a priestess." She paused when he stopped walking. "What?"

"You know my people are thieves." He said, slowly at first, and she nodded. "We live a life that requires constant movement, but it is fulfilling. Never a dull moment. We take care of our own. We are a true family." He paused again. "You have a tie into our family through your son. For as long as he wishes, which may not be too long seeing as his mate is returning, you could live in his house."

Kagome studied his face for a bit. He wasn't angry about the suggestion. "You would have to deal with me for as long as he willed it, and I don't calm down. I am like this all the time." She smiled when he grimaced.

"I suppose I could handle it." He said. "If you were on your best behavior."

"Oh, never." She laughed and they continued walking. "But I don't know if the life of a thief will suite me," she mused. "I was never one for that sort of thing. I was always the one chasing the thieves."

"Can I ask you a question and have you answer truthfully?" Youko interrupted her.

"Isn't that what the water was for?" She asked.

"That wore off late last night." He laughed.

"Well, I suppose if I am going to be living in your Den, I owe you truth." She made a mental note not to lie too forcefully.

"You say you don't know if this lifestyle will fit you. But you know that its going to be something that would keep you both around a family that would take care of you and you would always have something to think about the next day."

"I didn't say that it didn't appeal to me-"

"Don't interrupt," He scolded. "That wasn't my question. My question is, woman: when its all said and done, what did you really do yesterday that was worth mentioning?" He watched as her expression went from careful to startled. "How about the day before that? And the day before that?"

"I-" Kagome paused. She wasn't expecting that type of a question. "I was living with..." She stopped again.

"Don't you want to be able to say that you did something, that you accomplished an end that you worked for?" He watched her and her eyes fell to the ground and she stopped moving. "Do you want to live your life and at the end when its all said and done, not have anything to show for it?"

"I destroyed Naraku." She mumbled.

"Five hundred years ago, and that was another lifetime for you. This is your lifetime as a human being free of a feeling of necessity to do everything for other people." He placed a clawed finger under her chin and lifted her head up. "Could you have lived like you have the last five hundred years and in the end said you were content?"

"No." She mumbled again, and the realization brought tears to her eyes. "No." She repeated and he dropped his hand.

"I didn't think so." Youko all but purred and brushed the tears from her cheeks. "Come on, your kit will smell them." He said, trying to stop the flood gates that seemed to have opened.

At the mention of Shippou, Kagome took a deep breath and threw her head back as if to scream. Youko's hands flew to his ears, but as she opened her mouth nothing came out but a soundless scream. It was this fact that Youko was grateful for.

"Come on." She said when she was done. "I have a house to clean if I remember Shippou." She laughed and the pair continued on through the forest.


	4. Chapter 4

Reincarnated Poet: Hello all, I feel a need to make a statement I might have been remiss in. I have taken some poetic liscence with the timeline in this story. Someone, I adore the person who did it because that means they're paying attention, pointed out that my timeline was wrong. I know, in short. It has to be for the story to work out properly in its end. You'll see.

Chapter Four –Self-Imposed Hermit – 1,318

"You've got a lot of choices. If getting out of bed in the morning is a chore and you're not smiling on a regular basis, try another choice."

~Steven D. Woodhull

Life for Kagome in the kitsune village wasn't difficult by any means, but it wasn't easy either. The villagers treated her with a polite disinterest and anyone who treated her unjustly was quickly chastised by a silent glare from either Youko Kurama or Shippo. Shippo as it turned out, had actually grown to be mature and his home was clean and well kept. In short, she had absolutely nothing to do, but no one to really share the time with. She quickly slipped into a state of self pity and pouting.

It was two months before the silver tailed fox invaded upon her self absorbed pity. She had been sitting in the tent that served as Shippo's home for the last three days, playing solitaire with an overused and worn set of playing cards that she had had made of a thin wood a few years ago. She hadn't eaten anything in days, and her form was starting to show it. But for all the faults, the darkness of the tent appealed to her. It wasn't too bright that it hurt her eyes, she was never too cold or too warm, and she was always comfortable.

"Come on." A familiar voice came from the tent door. "Out of there woman!" It called again. "Don't make me come in there and haul you out like a child." It warned, but like the other times, she just looked back down to her cards.

"Come on!" It called again, this time much more annoyed. "This is my village and you're making me look like a worried mother, now get out here." She just moved a two back and forth between two threes and kept playing. No matter what she did she couldn't see the moves. She knew there had to be something there, but it was just beyond her vision. She didn't hear the tent flap come open, nor did she hear him walk up behind her. In fact, had he been a bit more gentle, she might not have realized right away when he threw her over his shoulder and carried her from the shelter.

"Put me down!" She argued half heartedly as she say Shippo wave at her before darting into his housing. "That kit did this!" She shouted, her vigor renewed with her anger.

"No," Youko said, hoisting her off his shoulder and dumping her unceremoniously onto the ground. "No, the kit just informed me that you were wasting away in there. We can't allow one of the members of the next raid to become unhealthy."

"It's my business..." She paused, "The next raid?" Now he had her attention.

"We're running a rather small raid. Two people, in and out." He smiled smugly. "It'll be easy."

"Two people?" Kagome asked, trying to remember if anyone had ever said anything to her about going on a raid, but nothing clicked.

"You and me, Lady of all Times." He bowed mockingly at her, a habit he had picked up rather quickly. "We're breaking into a vault in the spirit world. It should be rather easy, seeing as though its run by an infant and guarded by one person."

"An infant?" She asked, actual curiosity creeping into her voice.

"You'll see." He laughed and offered her his hand up. As had become a bit of tradition, she ignored it and rose to her feet on her own. She nodded and headed back to the tent without a word. "No no no no no." He said, jumping easily in front of her. "We have to go over plans and information. I refuse to let this mission fail, seeing as though its my ass on the line, and if I might say, it's a rather fine ass. I'd hate to loose it."

She sighed and rolled her eyes. "I just want to go back to the tent." She tried to get by him, but her gripped her shoulders painfully.

"That's enough, you insolent little child!" He scolded, voice harsher than he had planned. "You've got a lot of choices. If getting out of bed in the morning is a chore and you're not smiling on a regular basis, try another choice." He sighed and let her go. She would either get over this depression on her own, or she would die there, in the tent, with her odd cards. He threw his hands up and walked away to his tent. Well in all fairness it was more of a house, seeing as though he _was _the leader of this little shindig. He threw himself down on a pile of pillows and buried his head in the silk texture.

He never heard the door open, nor did he hear her walk over behind him. He might not have heard her had she not cleared her throat first. "I'm sorry." She whispered. "You know, I got news just a week ago. News from the castle." He didn't answer, but gestured blindly behind his head for her to continue. "InuYasha has taken a liking to a demoness." Youko sat up and faced her.

"The half breed dog?" Youko asked. He very rarely heard anything of his old 'friend' and his annoyance of a little brother.

"He's a demon and deserves as much respect as you demand." Kagome said sharply before her face relaxed. "There's going to be an announcement. Sesshomaru is throwing a coronation ceremony in two weeks, where the mating and crowing of his brother will be celebrated."

"Ha!" Youko burst out. "I have an invitation then!" He laughed again, and when Kagome rose an eyebrow at him he continued. "The lords of the surrounding lands always attend such things. As such, all lords and one guest of their choosing cannot be turned away." He was smiling like the cat who caught the canary, which honestly, wasn't that far from the truth.

"Ah," Kagome nodded her head. Over the few months that she had been in self exile, the silver fox and sat with her from time to time, listening to her talk of InuYasha and the things that had went on in the past.

"I think I know who I'm taking too." His smiled intensified as Kagome sat wide eyed. "Oh, yes, I can see it now. The Legendary Youko Kurama, King of Thieves and the Lady Kagome of All Times. We'll make quite the hubbub." He laughed again.

"No." Kagome said quietly but firmly.

"Yes." He said, smiling.

"No."

"Yes."

"There is no way I am doing this!" She said angrily. They had fought about this for the better part of two weeks, and at present Youko had just stepped out of her tent and left a rather surly kitsune woman. Kagome quickly found herself stripped nude, thrown into a tub, roughly scrubbed, dried, and combed. Her skin was pink with more than embarrassment. A smooth fabric was shoved roughly over her head and pulled down so that it hung like an apron over her nude form. A wrap was pulled tightly around her waist and her hair was pulled roughly out of the way.

She was lost in a swirl of color and fabric, but before she knew it she was thrown in front of a mirror to stare blankly at her reflection. It had been a while, she mused. She hadn't worn a dress in...three hundred years, let alone one that forced whoever was looking at her to notice how her chest had filled out and the slim curve of her waste followed by her hips. A light rouge had been applied to her face, and if she hadn't been accustomed to the normal pale of her cheeks she would have never known it was there.

"Yes." Was the only word that was said in the room. She turned around and looked at the fox demon where he stood leaning stoically against one of the posts that held the tent up.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Hello my freaky darlings! I know, it has been years...months? I'm not sure. Anyway, this story is completely written, as such, you get chapters in fairly quick succession (but no more than one a day depending on review time). I'm not going to flood you with text though. This chapter's title is a bit special to me. If you know where it came from, you get an immediate chapter! Oh, my other stories will be updated probably later on tonight or tomorrow as well. Cheers.

Chapter Five-Freaking at the Freaker's Ball~6000

"Time that you enjoyed wasting, was not wasted."

~John Lennon

"There is no way I am doing this!" She said angrily. They had fought about this for the better part of two weeks, and at present Youko had just stepped out of her tent and left a rather surly kitsune woman. Kagome quickly found herself stripped nude, thrown into a tub, roughly scrubbed, dried, and combed. Her skin was pink with more than embarrassment. A smooth fabric was shoved roughly over her head and pulled down so that it hung like an apron over her nude form. A wrap was pulled tightly around her waist and her hair was pulled roughly out of the way.

She was lost in a swirl of color and fabric, but before she knew it she was thrown in front of a mirror to stare blankly at her reflection. It had been a while, she mused. She hadn't worn a dress in...three hundred years, let alone one that forced whoever was looking at her to notice how her chest had filled out and the slim curve of her waste followed by her hips. A light rouge had been applied to her face, and if she hadn't been accustomed to the normal pale of her cheeks she would have never known it was there.

"Yes." Was the only word that was said in the room. She turned around and looked at the fox demon where he stood leaning stoically against one of the posts that held the tent up.

"Yes what?" She groused, pulling at the front of the dress, trying to make it cover more skin than it was designed to cover. "She blew an errant strand of her hair away from her forehead, where it refused to leave. The dark expanse had been drawn up, away from her face and neck and pinned up with a series of ruddy brown combs. The craftsmanship of them, from an outsider, would have been of a good class, well shaped and fitting together beautifully. To Kagome, who knew how the kitsune valued both their hair and their craftsmanship, knew that they were of lesser work. The plump woman had told her in not so many words that combs of the calibre that Shippo had given Rin were a protection, and that she had no one to offer that within the village. It had bothered her, at first, but as she stood before Youko Kurama, the sense of independance that she'd had years ago started to trickle back.

"Well, not entirely." He pushed away from the beam he leaned against, swishing his tail back and forth, crossed arms relaxing to his sides. He crossed the distance quickly, hand coming up and digging into her hair, fingers seeking for something. She flinched, down slightly, but froze when the other hand came up and held her in place by the base of her neck. Gentle but firm, he dug until the combs came free, sending the darkness tumbling down around her shoulders and to her back. "There." He murmured, tossing the accessories to the table in the corner of the tent, where they scattered, one falling to the floor. Kagome ducked her eyes as his golden ones bored into her face. He allowed the hand around her neck to fall to his side, the other returned to move errant hairs to where he wanted them to fall. "Perfect." He murmured, backing off as quickly as he'd come forward. He leaned against the beam again, a knowing smile on his lips.

"I don't know why you're doing this." She finally broke the silence, turning away from the kitsune to glare at her reflection in the mirror. She was more pale than she would have liked, and the dress was the wrong color for her eyes, but she couldn't complain about the fit or cut. A bit low. She finally amended about the cut. He watched her preen, golden eyes sliding up and down her body with a slick, practiced ease. He liked watching her when she didn't know she was being watched. She was more natural, relaxed, and carefree.

"Because, my pet," he murmured, voice thicker than she'd heard it before. "The puppy has to know what he let go." He slid across the room, topped her fussing hands, and from a fold in his clothing produced a simple cold chain. He looped it around her neck twice before clasping it. He liked the way the chain shimmered with her pale skin and the green of the dress, but he liked the power the fine chain held far more. A smile slid across his face before he retreated, leaving the tent in silence.

Kagome stood there a moment, eyeing the chain in the mirror. She fingered it gently, picking up a subtle change in the texture, but writing it off as the delicate worksmanship. She let her head slide slightly to the side, eyeing her reflection one more time. She smiled slightly. Maybe InuYasha would see what he'd let his brother take away. She sighed and turned toward the tent door. Youko Kurama wouldn't wait forever, and she had less of an urge to test his patience since the last time he'd thrown her over his shoulder.

The sunlight stung her eyes, but made the shine of her hair dance along the length. Kurama waited for her as patiently as he knew how, Shippo had already warned him about how to treat his mother while they were out, and if the master theif was telling the truth, it was truely adorable. He'd almost thought about obeying, and then the woman had stepped from the dark mistly light of the tent and into the bright sunlight. He felt a wicked little smile make its way across his face before he stiffled it. It wouldn't do to let the woman know that he was going to use her to his utmost advantage.

The journey through the woods and back to the Western Castle took a tenth of the time on the back of a dog hanyou and a fifth of the time in the arms of a kitsune, though Kagome was suspect that the pale skinned, gold eyed man had delayed the journey only to prolong her discomfort. At first she'd agreed to riding along on his back, but he'd complained that it would wrinkle the dress. She'd found herself quickly in his arms on what could only be described as a lazy pace by one used to demonic paces.

When the castle came into view, Kagome wished that he'd have taken more time to torment her. The grim mask that Sesshomaru had banished her with wouldn't leave the forfront of her mind, and the pain that her presence would cause both herself and the inu-hanyou weighed on her consciouness. The kitsune seemed to sense her trepidation and quickened his pace, setting her down outside the open iron gate that sat nestled into the stone walls. She rung her hands together slightly, shoulders slumped in around herself. Her eyes were dull, directed down, and darting back and forth as the various demons that had gathered for the fair waited their turn for admittance. Youko Kurama was not a man to suffer the inadequacies of others, but he also wasn't a man to allow a beautiful woman to feel inadequate. With a flourish he extended an elbow for her to take, and guided her through the throng. The King of Theives did not wait through lines, and it did not go over well with some of the lower class which felt they were entitled.

"Fox, get to the rear of the line, this is not one of your orgies." The voice stood out amongst the other angry voices, and the kitsune stopped quickly, turning, and bringing the slight form on his elbow to his back, gaurding her from the confrontation that would occur. It was a cat demon of some kind, a large cat with spots, probably a cheetah, if Youko had to venture a guess from the pattern and the attitude.

"My people do have orgies, feline, but they also have festivals the likes of which you will never grace." The words slipped past his mouth, backing the cat down with a flare of his aura. He turned then, as Kagome tugged on his elbow, leaving the cat to stew. There would be no more words against the silver tailed fox. "They let everyone into these dog demon parties." He murmured into Kagome's ear, eliciting a brilliant blush just as they cleared the crowd to stand at the gate, where the inu-family was greeting its visitors. The raven haired girl ducked her head to try and hide the blush his proximity brought, but it was seen by a pair of aging golden eyes. The eldest inu-youkai politely excused himself from a discussion with a river demoness of some kind and made his way through the maze of people to stand before the silver kitsune and his prize.

"Youko Kurama, you are welcomed into my court as a Lord of the Kitsune Nation, but your choice of arm candy is unacceptable." He shot a cold, harsh glance at Kagome, who blushed now in embarrassment. Arm candy? She thought. Is that what I've become? The silver creature at her back smiled wide and conjured up mock suprise.

"Are you insulting my escort?" Kurama asked, voice dangerous and egging the inu-demon to take the bait. He would love to match the dog in combat once more before his death, but the Lord of the West quickly stood down, eyes furiously darting to the young woman.

"Of course your escort is appropriate, my mistake." He growled out before a coughing fit. When it ended, he glanced back to his young brother, who had thankfully not seen the young miko yet. "I emplore you, Kagome, leave now, and stop a mistake before it happens." His voice was that of her friend again, but the words he'd bitten at her earlier were still there, sharp and painful.

"Arm candy cannot make a mistake, as it does not bring about its own choices, does it, Sesshomaru?" She bit back, and Youko Kurama swelled with pride at the woman's words. Her backbone, it appeared, was still in place. Her dark blue eyes scanned the crowd, looking for the inu-hanyou that Sesshomaru so desparately wanted her to avoid. He noticed the way her eyes sought.

"Kagome, my sister, it is to protect you for pain as much as him that I ask you again to leave." He seemed older now, far too stressed and fatigued than the simple conversation should have made him.

"From insults to pleading, Sesshomaru," Youko cut in, a smile on his face. "You seem desperate." Kagome's dark eyes caught a flash of silver hair and her heart lept into her throat. As the two taller demons sparred with their words she studied his smiling face. He seemed happy, she mused, watching him talk animatedly with several demons that in the past would have looked down their nose at his dirty blood. She smiled brightly, drawing the awe of those around her. They were released from her spell when the smile faltered. A woman, beautiful and adorned with a brilliant cascade of bright red hair, stepped from behind another, taller demon, clutching to InuYasha's arm, a smile on her dainty little face. She had brilliant bright green eyes, sparkling with happiness, and she caught her intended's attention like Kagome knew no one ever had in the past. Not Kikiyo. Not Kagome. Not Naraku or Sesshomaru or Sango or Miroku. His gold eyes trained on her for a moment, gauging her condition and reactions, before passing on, sweeping along the crowd. Kagome flinched when his gaze passed her over. She moved quickly, hiding herself behind the large frame of the older inu-demon.

"You're right." She whispered, but the words were louder than the near shouting Youko and Sesshomaru were doing. She glanced down as Sesshomaru's gaze locked for a moment with hers, and the Western Lord visibly deflated at the tears that pooled in the young girl's eyes. "You're right, and I'm sorry." She slipped backward, backing away from a concerned Sesshomaru and a confused Youko before turning and disappearing quickly into the crowd.

"Do you see what you're games have cost this time, Theif?" Sesshomau asked, eyes trying to keep up with the girl as she slipped between and around couples.

"Yes, yes I do, but was it my games or your stubborn need to continue a line that was already muddled with ningen blood?" The kitsune eyed the inu-demoness that hung from the arm of the youngest brother. She was pretty, he assumed, in a different sort of way. Her hair was wild and the youko did enjoy its color, but she was slight and pinched in the face, no where near as completely beautiful as the miko who'd just fled. He glared at the elder brother and bowed mockingly before sweeping through the crowd after the human.

Past the large iron gate and just out of earshot, Kagome stopped running. Her dress was starting to wrink with her movements, and her hair-she was sure-was a mess. The hard work that the plump kitsune woman had done on her face was surely destroyed. She spun in a wide circle, head down, arms moving in aggitation. Finally, she screamed, collapsing to her knees and clutching at her hair. Tears came then, silent and fat, slipping down ehr cheeks and neck, absorbing into the plunging neckline of her dress.

"You know," She startled at the voice of the kitsune so close to her. "If you want to leave, we could." He dangled the bait there, waiting for her to take it. She swiped at her eyes quickly, trying to dispell the tears. She thought about it a moment before straightening up.

"I don't think making InuYasha jealous is going to work tonight." She felt something heavy settle into the pit of her stomach, like she might never be able to jump or run again. "You're wasting your time." She murmured, standing and crossing her arms across her chest. The wind away from the castle walls was stronger and sent a chill down her arms. Kurama watched her stand there for a moment, saw the curve of her spine and the defeat in her stance, the danger in letting her leave thinking that she was less, and the pride that was lost in last five minutes. He made a decision then, watching her dark hair blow wispy and loose in the breeze.

"Wasting my time." He rolled the words on his tongue only to find them distasteful and bitter. "Time you enjoyed wasting, my dear." He crossed the expanse between them quickly, running his hands down her shoulders and upper arms, rubbing warmth into them. "Time you enjoyed wasting, was not wasted at all." He turned her around then, forced her chin up, and fixed her with a livascious smirk. "Tell me, standing at the arm of one of the most beautiful men in this place, dancing and making your ex jealous, could you have a good time?" He winked down at her, "I know I could have a ball on the arm of the most beautiful woman in there." He rubbed a finger against the dull glow of the gold chain around her neck. It shone for a moment, and he smiled again.

Kagome stared up at the kitsune. It took her a moment to consider his words, and when she finally did, she blushed. "I suppose." She murmured, glancing down to watch his fingers play against the gold chain. "What're you-"

"Then come on." He cut her off, taking her hand in his and pulling her toward the castle. He let out a deep laugh as his long legs forced hers to job to keep up. Her returned laughter spurred them on further, faster, and louder. As they wove back through the crowd several demons glared at them, growling and snarling as they passed. Finally, when they broke through to the inner circle, where Sesshomaru and InuYasha were continuing to meet guests, Youko stopped, drew Kagome forward, to his side, and guided her slowly with a firm lead toward the silver haired hanyou.

It was the demoness that noticed them first. "Youko Kurama!" She murmured, entending a hand forward with a pleasant smile that made Kagome hate her all the more. She was pleasant to talk to, and entertaining them while InuYasha was still turned the other way, wrapping up a conversation with a rather serious bird demon. "Hello!" She shook Kagome's hand pleasantly, a smile on her face. "I'm Arynna." She flashed them both another wide smile. "I'm so glad that the Kitsune Den could send someone, let alone their King of Theives." Youko bowed low, his ego inflating substantially at the attention. "And you're mate is lovely." She studied Kagome for a moment before cocking her head to the side in a confused manner at the blush that colored Kagom'e cheeks.

"I'm not his mate." She supplied, but when Arynna glanced up at Kurama, he didn't dispute the point either way. "It's nice to meet you as well." Kagome felt her hatred for the woman dissipate ever so slightly.

"I'm sorry for the confusion, but you looked so happy coming through the crowd earlier." She smiled brightly. "I can only hope my mate and I have as much fun with each other as the both of you." She paused. "I'm sorry, I don't know your name."

"It's-"

"Kikiyo." Sesshomaru had wormed his way through the crowd, and the name that he bestowed upon Kagome made her chest hurt. InuYasha's head turned at the name, and his breath caught as he saw the woman on the arm of the kitsune King Thief.

"Kagome?" He asked, but was quickly ushered away by his brother to make arrangements for the rest of the evening. Kagome ducked her head, eyes seeking out anywhere but the silver haired brothers, one struggling to get away, the other to come back.

"Is it Kikiyo or Kagome?" The woman asked, still pleasant, but staring after her future mate in confusion. From behind her, a young woman appeared, bowing low to both Kurama and Arynna, interupting the questioning. "Lord Youko, my lord wanted me to inform you that your escort Kikiyo has been delayed, and that Kagome is needed back at the Den for nursing." The woman straightened and there was a moment of pause when both Youko and Kagome recognized the woman as Rin's reincarnate. Her eyes showed a level of sorrow and regret that Kagome had never seen in the young woman years in the past.

"So you are Kagome?" Arynna asked, confusion on her face now. "A broodmother at the Den?" She asked, looking up at Youko for confirmation.

"I'm a human." Kagome corrected. "And I live at the Den for reasons that are my own." Arynna looked taken aback by the words, but Kagome didn't care. It would be long past Sesshomaru's death before Kagome forgave him this time. "But she is correct, Lord Youko Kurama, I am needed at the Den." She turned then, pivoting to leave, "perhaps Sesshomaru will find Kikiyo to be a more suitable escort." She tried to leave, but was pulled back to Kurama's side as he tightened his hold on her hand.

"Perhaps I will accompany you to the river." He murmured, bowing low to Arynna and guiding Kagome away. They walked for ten minutes in silence before Kurama's curiosity got the better of him. "Who is Kikiyo, and why does her name cause you such malice?" He had liked the future Lady of the West well enough, but Kagome seemed to remain staunch in her hatred.

"Kikiyo was a woman far greater than I in both love and power, let's end it with that." Kagome growled, feeling something akin to rage boiling in her stomach. She wondered for a moment if her rage could taint the Jewel that had been returned to her body all those centuries ago. She stormed away, still unaware that her hand was still tucked neatly into his, and again he used her as a human yo-yo, this time drawing her back against his chest, a place she'd found herself quite a few times over the course of the evening.

"If Sesshomaru wants a woman of beauty in her power and power in her beauty, let us give her to him." He again ran a finger along the gold necklace with a smile. "But I'd rather have a woman as beautiful in her power as in her play, and as powerful in her words as in her heart." He winked. "But it wouldn't hurt to fuck with them?" Kagome cocked an eyebrow at the demon, but slowly allowed herself to be pulled back to the party. This time there was no line. Everyone that was going to get in was inside, and Kagome giggled at the pout that crossed the kitsune's face at being locked out.

"If we're going to be thieves and brood mothers..." Kagome trailed off, glancing along the expanse of the castle wall. "Then we should use the servant's entrance." She pulled him along now, a few yards down the wall and through a much smaller wooden door. Youko marveled at her attitude as she quickly lead him through the twists and turns of the castle's behind the scenes network. They slipped into the dinning hall before the wedding part even entered. It was a grand room, smaller than some in the castle, but it was designed to be more intimate. There was a dance hall ajacent, and some couples were milling about, dancing to a slow string band. Kurama gave a grand gesture toward the room, marveling at the cost of it all. The actual dinning room was lined with tall glass panes, some stained in epic scenes and some simple glass mirrors. The room was lit by candle light, cast to different hues by colored glass.

"The money I could make here!" He exclaimed, and Kagome had to pull him away from a rather jewel encrusted vase. "Oh, you'll spoil my fun." He chided before mischievously pulling her in front of one of the full length mirrors. Kagome studied herself for a moment in the mirror, rather unhappy with the appearance that she saw there. She was larger than Arynna and her hair was dull in comparison. Youko watched her study her reflection before he let his finger come out one last time and rub against the gold chain. Kagome gasped as it felt like the chain grew more heavy around her neck, expanding, and glowing. The others in the room didn't seem to notice as her reflection grew taller, hair longer and a deep blonde, skin tan. She blushed as her green dress shimmered from existance and in its wake the gold chain seemed to wrap down and around herchest, creating the framework for a golden gown that seemed to be a changed skin tone rather than clothing. Youko Kurama chuckled as the magic within the necklace stopped spreading and the glow subsided. Kagome stood, mouth agape at the reflection in the mirror.

"What did you do?" She hissed, and flinched when her voice was not her own. It was deeper, huskier, and more seductive than she was sure she'd ever sounded in her life.

"I made a woman that has beauty in her power and power in her beauty." He laughed loudly, drawing the attention of the couples in the room. "There are a race of demonesses, succubi if you will, that walk the earth surviving on their beauty and the power that it brings them. Tonight, Kagome Higurashi, or Kikiyo, as Sesshomaru dubbed you, you are one such demoness." He smirked down at the woman who let her hands come out and tug through her long blonde hair. "Let's see where InuYasha's affections lie." Kurama murmured, leading her forward on his arm as the happy couple entered through the rear of the room.

InuYasha seemed distracted now, eyes scanning the room, finally settling on Youko. He let his golden eyes slide to where Kagome stood and confusion crossed his face. He turned then, whispering to Sesshomaru, who shook his head angrily. The taller demon paced across the room, straight for Youko Kurama, who turned toward Kagome, lips pressed almost to her ear to whisper, "Here comes the big dog to scold me for getting rid of you." Youko straightened up just as Sesshomaru approached, face red with anger.

"Kitsune, you try my patients." The Western Lord hissed, glancing over his shoulder at InuYasha. "First Kagome and now a whore in body paint?" Kagome blushed deeply, but the illusion didn't allow the color to show through. "I won't have a slut in my presence." Sesshomaru hissed this time sending her a glare. Something in Kagome broke in that moment, something deep and guarded and important.

"Yes, Lord Fluffy," She bowed low, voice tickled with a combination between anger and mirth. "Because no one would want your delicate little brother to make a decision that was his own." Kagome straightened then, took two steps toward him, and whispered on tip toe, "Sesshy, you only get so many chances to decide what I am. I'm either a dead clay doll, a brood mare, or a whore. Make a decision." She stepped away then, and couldn't help but laugh when comprehension crossed the Great Dog's features.

"Kagome." He whispered, sitting down heavily on one of the dinner chairs. "Are you trying to kill me?" He asked, and for a moment, she saw the man that had been there before he found out he was dying. He watched her for a moment, as if trying to see her face through the illusion. "Why are you doing this to yourself?" He asked, looking back at InuYasha, who was now dancing with his future mate. "He loved you, isn't that enough?"

Kagome, for her part, ducked her head, but the firm presence of Youko Kurama made itself known, and for once, she realized why she was really there. "I'm here, Sesshomaru, because I was run from my home, in the dawn like a thief. I was given less than twenty-four hours and the clothes on my back after how many centuries of servitude to you. When I was nothing but a woman with a pretty comb, the Den took me in. The Den, the kitsune you seem to hate so much took me in, when you put me out. Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Lands, you are why Kagome, Lady of All Times, stands here in a siren's skin, and you are why she will remain until she feels that you have shown her proper respect." The words were more proud and firm than she had ever hoped to be able to form. The Great Lord simply ducked his head as if in shame, stood up, and went back to his throne at the head of the table.

Youko Kurama stood at her back as she watched the dog demon go, and he couldn't help but feel a swelling of pride in her words. She was right, he had taken her in, but it hadn't been a completely selfless act. He'd known, when he'd taken her in, that the Dog wouldn't be pleased. Her ire perhaps is what he took pride in. The girl that had come to his Den was subserviant, fleeing her home because some dying beast told her to, and now, she stood before that same creature and put him in his place. It was perfection if Kurama had ever seen it. "The lady has a point, my friend." He murmured at himself. Kurama stabbed at the pride of the inu-youkai once more before glancing at InuYasha and his young mate as they made their way, arm in arm, down the dinning table.

"Sesshomaru, have you seen Kagome?" He asked, oblivious to the slightly concerned look that crossed his mate's face. Her eyes darted to the woman at the side of Youko Kurama, and secretely wished the blue eyed girl was back, with her soft appearance and more simple beauty. There was an ease about her that made the female inu-demoness feel relaxed and comfortable. The siren seated in front of her future mate made her feel on edge, territorial, and if her instincts weren't as completely controlled as they were, there might have been blood.

"Kagome was required at the Den." Youko Kurama interjected, cutting off the ancient Lord of the West before he could ruin the game. "One of the females was having a difficult time with a birthing, and she thought perhaps her healing aura could be useful." Kagome straightened up a little in the siren's skin. It wasn't a complete lie, she had helped ease several births both in Sesshomaru's castle and in the Den since her arrival. The children in the womb responded well to her calming aura, and made it that much less difficult for the mother. Once or twice her healing energies had been required in the aftermath of a birthing.

"Lady Kagome seems rather kind hearted." Arynna smiled softly at the fox demon, who let his golden eyes slide toward Kagome mischievously. Kagome, for her part, deflated on the inside. Here was this woman, this beautiful dog demon, speaking well of her, and all Kagome could think was that she had taken her away from InuYasha. Slowly the cold on her heart melted, but if the siren's body did anything on the outside, it was invisible for all watching. "You're..." Arynna turned her attention to the siren, attempting to force the same level of happiness. "Replacement escort is rather beautiful." InuYasha watched his mate's eyes work the young woman up and down, catching himself doing the same just moments later.

"Kagome of All Times is a bit too soft for her own good." Kurama replied, words almost biting. "And my escort is a beauty is she not, InuYasha?" Kurama nearly shivered with the look Sesshomaru sent his way. "Though your mate is just as pleasant on the eye, perhaps moreso!" He brought it back around, smiling with a low bow to Arynna. "May I propose a dance?" He held his hand out for Arynna to take, who let a glance slide at the dog demon for a moment before accepting the hand offered. She watched carefully as the fox swept her onto the dance floor and away from her mate, who now stood alone, next to the siren skin with the light pink eyes.

"You're escort is beautiful." Arynna said, making conversation with the hansom fox, who seemed to be acting the perfect image of a gentleman. "But I rather liked the other girl better."

"Why's that my Lady?" He asked, spinning her in a wide circle, barely avoiding sending her careening into a tall pedstle adorned with flowers. He pulled her back close, too close, and she purposefully put more space between them.

"She seems much more than your current date." Arynna chose her words diplomatically, a trait that made the kitsune smile.

"You mean that my current escort appears to be as shallow as a thimble." He suppled, sending the woman spinning again so she couldn't eyeball her mate at the woman that he was currently dancing with. Kurama glanced back at the couple on the other side of the table dancing oddly close to a corner. The woman's back was stiff, moving uncomfortable in the man's space. His hand wandered dangerously low on her lower back, and the kitsune growled low in his throat, a noise that was not lost on the inu-demoness that redened when she caught the action.

"If its not too far, I would suggest that she's here as more than your escort, and I would ask that you keep her on a shorter leash than you are now." Arynna's eyes hardened and met gold.

"My Lady!" Kurama exclaimed, haulting their dance and holding a hand to his heart. "Are you suggesting that a kitsune is up to hyjinx?" He bowed with a lewd wink. "If the answer is in the positive, then you are correct. I would also take a step further and let you in on the prank, if you'd like to train both your future mate and his over bearing older brother." Arynna studied the kitsune a moment before her eyes rolled over toward her mate and the woman in his arms. If anything, putting the inu-hanyou in his place sooner rather than later would be a positive thing, especially if he thought he was going to be allowed a mistress.

"Well then, my Lord, I suggest you share in the game." She smiled briefly before her eyes darted back to the couple. It was difficult to not cross the room and tear the woman away from her intended. Kurama chuckled at the look that crossed her face. "Quickly, or I may do something to your escort that I may regret later."

"Oh, my Lady, you show your emotions, but perhaps we should revisit the way you felt about my escort earlier." Her rose a single eyebrow and pointedly turned her then around in his arms so that her back was pressed to his chest and she had a front row view of the couple dancing across the room. There were more people on the dancefloor now, but even through the illusion Kurama could make out the discomfort of the woman standing there. "They dance well, don't they?" He asked, restraining her when she tried to pull away from him. He wasn't sure if it was away from him or toward the couple. "Doesn't she look natural there?" He asked again, and he could feel the youkai rising in the woman. He spared a glance at Sesshomaru, who was being regailed upon by a nondescript demon. When the woman's power level spiked slightly the dog demon's gaze shifted over to her, pupils sharpening slightly in annoyance.

"Get to your point, kitsune." She hissed, and it was clear in her tone that he was pushing a touch too far.

"The point my dear, is that I am an excellent weaver of illusions." He smirked down at her from over her shoulder. Her eyes met his a moment before confusion set in and she was once again drawn back to the couple. "The Great Lords of the West thought my little Kagome was unfit to be here because of the feelings that circulated between herself and your mate that didn't come to fruitition in the course of five hundred years. He thought that with the threat around, you'd be unable to keep your cool, so he sent her away to my little Den. I thought she was fetching, so I dressed her up and brought her out, but Sesshomaru sent her away." He paused, checking to see if the future Lady of the West was up to his games.

"If nothing happened in five hundred years it was never going to happen." Arynna spoke, now more interested in the game than the couple. "And I have excellent control of my instincts."

"Yes, but our old friend didn't know that, did he?" Kurama smiled for a moment, watching the annoyance on the woman's face. "But it doesn't matter what he thought, because now he thinks that you're going to cross the room and kill the woman standing in the circle of your mate's arms."

"I have the right." She defended, and her energy prickled just so along the kitsune's hands.

"But that might spoil all my fun!" He whined, spinning the girl around, pressing her back to his front. He leaned down, whispering in her ear. "I am a master of illusions. I could even, say, spin the image of a seductess along the body of a miko." Arynna's eyes widened quickly and she turned to glance up at him.

"That's Lady Kagome?" She asked, breathless. Youko only hummed in her ear, chin down, resting against her shoulder. He watched the pair dance, something in his stomach writhing at the site. He had to admit, given the circumstances, Kagome was handling herself fairly well. As the caster of the illusion, he could easily see through the shimmering gown. While he saw the appeal of the seductess, he enjoyed the soft blush that ran along the miko's cheeks and neck. "Then what's the joke; I'm afraid I don't understand."

"The joke, my wonderful little Inu, is that in about thirty seconds you're going to cross the room, grab Kagome a bit too tightly, and make some manner of leud gesture or comment while dragging her from the room." The girl huffed in his arms, but didn't deny her part in the game.

"And then?" She asked, glancing over at his face, perched on her shoulder. "You can't expect me to bed the girl." She nearly groaned as mischeif sparkled in his eyes.

"While that would be delicious, no. We're going to let Kagome give InuYasha and Sesshomaru a piece of her mind, and then I'm going to take that little minx out here, make her be present and proud of what she is, and you are going to tell Lord Fluffy exactly where to get off." He glanced over at her. "Sound like a plan?" she didn't answer, instead, she slipped from his arms, crossed the room with a sultry sling to her hips, and placed a hand delicately on Kagome's elbow.

**Author's Notes: Well, that's the chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. It turned out quite a lot larger than I had intended. **


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Hello my freaky darlings! Such great reviews you guys have given me! I have been checking the hit list, and was kind of shocked by the number of people reading my story all over the globe. If you're out there and not in the USA, let me know in your reviews. Its kinda cool. Anyway, I waiting until the hits got around what my other chapters were getting in the first week before posting this. I hate it when people chapter dump and I have ten chapters to read, so...Here is the next chapter.

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Chapter Six - Confrontation of Realization

_"Home is a name, a word, it is a strong one; stronger than magician ever spoke, or spirit ever answered to, in the strongest conjuration."_  
~Charles Dickens

"While that would be delicious, no. We're going to let Kagome give InuYasha and Sesshomaru a piece of her mind, and then I'm going to take that little minx out here, make her be present and proud of what she is, and you are going to tell Lord Fluffy exactly where to get off." He glanced over at her. "Sound like a plan?" she didn't answer, instead, she slipped from his arms, crossed the room with a sultry sling to her hips, and placed a hand delicately on Kagome's elbow.

Kurama watched from a distance, sharp eyes trying to pick up what the Inu demoness was saying, but she quickly turned her back to him, cutting him out of his own plank. It miffed him a little bit, he had to admit, that the girl was playing her part so well. She would have made an excellent kitsune. Probably the most rewarding part of what transpired across the room was the shock written across both InuYasha and Kagome's faces, though the illusion around the miko portrayed none of her shock. In fact the illusion did things for her that made Youko slightly uncomfortable. Eyes darkened in faux lust. Lips parted just so. It had to have been Kagome though, that turned her head to stare at Youko for just a moment. Something squeezed around his heart, but the kitsune attributed it to pride.

InuYasha's eyes had widened, and there seemed to be a pinkness sneaking into the whites of his eyes. Whatever the little minx was doing was surely doing its job. Kurama crossed the dance floor just in time to see Arynna slide her hand down the length of Kagome's forearm and interlock their fingers. The Inu demoness pulled the girl away from the crowd toward a particularly well decorated panel in the wall. Kurama smiled as he approached InuYasha.

"My young lord, I feel as though our dates prefer each other rather than ourselves." He placed a hand on the Inu's shoulder. "I wasn't aware that your relationship with your mate was so open." He let the comment hang in the air, and was rewarded when the man next to him's energy started rolling off of him in waves. Youko smirked as the man followed his mate and the succubi through a small opening in the wall. Kurama startled at the presence of the hidden door. He was slacking.

He eyed the great lord, who sat at slumped in his throne, which had been brought into the dance hall for that particular purpose. The kitsune took in his appearance for a moment. Sesshomaru was little older than himself, but the great dog had gone from a force to be reconned with to a old man over the course of a hundred years. Kurama shuttered. For such a powerful demon to be brought so low by something was frightening. There were rumors circulating of course. Inu demon inbreeding. His own poison turned against him. An old injury. No one really knew the truth. It irked the kitsune for a moment, but he shook it off, choosing instead to follow the inu-demons and his little seductress.

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Out in the hallway, Kagome was panicking. She enjoyed the company of the inu-demoness, despite her own will to hate her, but the way the woman had been touching her, whispering into her ear, even going to far as to brush her lips against the flesh there...well, Kagome had always been attracted to men, but the woman at her side seemed to want to change that. She stood too close, touched too long. When they'd stood at InuYasha's side, Kagome was sure that the inu demon was going to kill one or both of them.

Now, in the darkness of a servant's hallway, the woman was leaning against the opposite side of the hall, staring at her intensely, as if trying to see something about her. "My Lady, I'm not entirely sure that you understand what's going on here." Kagome spoke in quick succession, trying to assuage any hard feelings that might be born by turning her down.

"I completely and totally understand what's going on here, Lady Kagome." Arynna spoke. "But I would very much so prefer it if you would simply call me Arynna and I could call you Kagome. The titles feel so much like bragging, and who am I to compete with Lady of All Times?" She asked, cocking a delicate eyebrow. "Someday, you'll have to tell me how you came to get such a title."

"Maybe." Kagome replied, confused. Realization dawned quickly. "Youko told you." She sighed and relaxed against the wall. "What is he up to?" She asked, but she already knew. The moment InuYasha had asked her to dance, she knew. It didn't make it any less painful.

"Teaching old dogs new tricks." Arynna spoke with confidence, glancing down the hallway as the piece of wall gave way and slid to the side. InuYasha's silver head peaked around the corner, and Arynna closed the distance between herself and Kagome in one short stride, pinning the girl beneath her and dropping her head to the side of her neck opposite the other dog demon. "Shhh!" She hissed with a bit of a giggle. "Let's see how jealous I can make the my mate." Kagome made a small eeping sound but complied. In the body of the seductress it was difficult to make any noise of motion not erotic. When she tried to distance herself from the dog demoness by rising her head, it looked like she tossed it back in rapture. When her hands came up to push the woman away at her biceps, it appeared as though she were caressing a lover.

"Arynna! What the hell?" InuYasha bellowed, and not for the first time, Kagome was shocked that his language hadn't ever matured throughout the years. The inu-demoness in front of her let herself be pushed away then, and turned her head to send a smirk at her mate.

"What?" she asked, blatantly not distancing their lower bodies. "She's beautiful is she not?" Kagome felt the illusion all over her skin, and she had to admit, she did feel beautiful. InuYasha glanced at the siren leaning against the wall, cheeks coloring slightly.

"Is this because I was dancing with her?" He asked, crossing his arms across the delicate blue of the clothing he wore. Now that he was taller, he reminded Kagome very much so of his older brother, but his gestures were completely and totally his own. Any second, she expected him to complain about the lack of ramen or the slowness with which they had traveled.

"Of course not, lover." Arynna murmured, and for the first time, Kagome could see the way that these two might be good for each other. Whereas before, out in front of everyone, Arynna had been a submissive wife, here in the darkness of the hallway, she challenged InuYasha much in the very way he needed to be challenged. "This is because you and your brother thought that I couldn't ignore my baser instincts." As she said it, Youko entered the hallway, a smile on his pale face. In the dark, there was a subtle difference between the silver of the inu and the kitsune. As Kagome watched him stalk forward, brushing past the inu demon, she could see it. Something that seemed to shine from within him, casting a faint glow into the darkness around him.

"I see you've stolen my little minx of a miko, Arynna." Youko all but purred, slipping between the two women pointedly and pulling Kagome, still in her rings of golden silk, hard to his chest. Underneath the illusion, the miko could feel her cheeks flush at the closeness and the embarrassment of the situation. She'd thought the kitsune had been playing at something throughout the night, but the way the inu-demoness had snatched her and drug her off into the hallway was not expected.

"Miko?" InuYasha echoed, eyeing the seductress closely. "That's not a miko." He groused, crossing his arms with a trademark noise of indignation that Kagome nearly felt warm her heart.

"Appearances, appearances, my friend." Kurama let a hand snake around Kagome's neck and rub against the necklace again with a deft finger. The cool metal shivered and the golden gown seemed to wind in upon itself, leaving Kagome standing there in her deep emerald dress, staring at InuYasha, who stared back, wide eyed and mouth agape. "I'm the King of Thieves, boy, a simple illusion is not beyond me." Youko purred against the side of Kagome's neck, and the miko swatted at him.

"Kagome?" InuYasha asked, taking a stuttering step forward. His expression quickly changed from shock to anger. "Where the hell did you go?" He crossed the short distance in one long stride, and crumpled the dark haired woman to his chest in a tight hug. "Sesshomaru told me you'd gone back home." He murmured into her dark hair, and Kagome felt herself relax with a deep sigh.

"He sent me away." She murmured, fighting back the tears that she knew would be coming by the tightness in her throat. "You were getting married and mated, and he thought it would be best if I was elsewhere." She pulled away, remembering the inu-demoness in the room. "And he was right." She said with more force than she needed. Liquid amber eyes looked down at her in a sort of shock before sliding over to his mate.

Arynna, for her part, was leaning against the wall, sharp eyes watching the pair. "We're going to talk to your brother." She snapped harshly, but her voice softened. "Kagome is welcome here as often as she'd like." The miko felt something swell in her chest at the invitation, but a glance at the silver haired kitsune grounded her.

"I appreciate that, and I might visit..." she trailed off. "But I've got a home now, and there's things that I want to do." She watched the kitune's face react to the statement, a slow smirk and a glint to his eyes. "Besides, since I've left I've learned a bit about life. I can't tell you what I did everyday before I left, none of it was worth remembering the specifics of." She glanced at InuYasha, who'd almost deflated at the statement. "I'm never going to get any older, InuYasha, do you understand what that means? I can't go home, and I'm going to stay as old as I am until the day I was born, and after that...well...after that who knows what's going to happen to me." She gave a lop sided grin to the inu-demon and his mate. "But bet on the fact that I'll be back." Arynna nodded and twinned her arm through her mate's.

"Let's go ridicule your brother." Arynna spoke softly, letting InuYasha know that he was forgiven.

"Alright." He replied, voice soft, still trying to process what had occured in the last few hours.

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Sesshomaru lounged back on his high backed throne. He'd had it brought into the parlor so he could rest and oversee the festivities. Some time ago he'd lost sight of both InuYasha and Arynna, but the girl had a good head on her shoulders, they would be back shortly, if even they'd disappeared at all. His eyesight was not what it used to be, and in the throng of dancers, he could have lost sight of them easily. He heaved a deep sigh, wincing as his diaphram forced oxygen into his lungs and shifted his rib cage. It was hell getting old before your time. If he was honest with himself, he didn't really believe that he had been dying until a few moments after he'd sent Kagome away. The miko, with all her healing abilities, might offer some relief from his disease, but the taiyoukai was too proud to accept it. There was something in the way that she'd looked at him that day, when he'd asked her to leave, that had cemented his resolve. He, taiyoukai of the western lands, weilder of the tokijin, was going to die. He was going to die as he had lived most of his life: cold and alone.

His aged eyes roamed over the crowd. There were people there that he didn't even know. It seemed that whenever the Western Lands had a social event, demons came from far and wide. The children of the demon slayer and the monk had been invited. They were obviously uncomfortable, standing together in a corner, backs to the wall to decrease any threats. He stiffled a chuckle. Humans took niceties to a rediculous level.

When InuYasha and Arynna reappeared, it was with the kitsune and the miko. Sesshomaru growled low in his throat at the kitsune as they made their way through the crowd. He should have known that the fox demon was up to something when he showed up with the miko. He tried valiantly to blame Kagome for her presence and the thunderous look on Arynna's face, but found he couldn't manage it. He'd known that an inu-demoness would be jealous of the closeness between the two.

He stiffened as he felt the energy rolling toward him in waves. It didn't take a genius to trace the sources. The dancers in the room stopped, moved away from the thunderous inu-mates and set up talking in hushed voices amongst themselves. Trying to diffuse the situation, the great lord stood with a smile. "I have to take care of some mundane affairs!" He cried, and the room seemed to relax. "Please, enjoy yourselves." He directed before slipping out through the door behind his throne. No doubt he'd get only a few feet before he was stopped by his brother. He imagined a controntation, if InuYasha ever found out, but what he didn't expect was the short red headed, green eyed power pack that gripped his elbow fiercely and spun him around.

"Arynna!" He all but shouted, freeing his elbow from her bruising grip.

"The inu-bitches that you've encountered might be unable to control their instincts, but I, Sesshomaru, have better control of myself than a dog in heat." She hissed, rising up on her toes, trying to meet the demon eye to eye.

"Arynna-"

"Do not Arynna me, Sesshomaru!" She spat, gesturing wildly back at InuYasha. "Was it me, or was it your brother that you didn't trust?" She asked.

"Most demonesses would not handle another woman in their mates life well. I simply removed the problem." Kagome visibly deflated at the phrasing. She'd lived with Sesshomaru and InuYasha for the better part of five hundred years; hearing she'd been a problem was the last thing she'd wanted. The argument that proceeded seemed to float around her head, but never actually register to the miko. The only thing that did was the firm hand against her lower back. There was something rubbing up and down the back of her neck soothingly, but she couldn't recognize a source. It was a voice that startled her, and it only did that because of the ferocity.

"What concerns me, Great Lord of the West, is how you would put out one of your own without a thought to her health, and after years of service, call her a problem." That was Kurama's voice, low and dangerous just over her shoulder. With his voice she became aware of his fingers ghosting along the back of her neck. The words seemed to draw the attention of the other demons. Sesshomaru's eyes widened minutely, taking in the sag in the miko's shoulders, and the far off glaze to her eyes.

"Kagome knows that I didn't mean-"

"The girl's coming back to the Den with me, and I promise you, Lord of the West, she will not be treated as a maid, a whore, or a thing to be used up." Something about the possessiveness in the words sparked something in the miko's spirit.

"I will do whatever I want to do!" She snapped, head shooting up to meet the startled gaze of the inu-demon lord across the hallway. "I'm sick of being led about like a child! I am a priestess, damnit, and I'll be treated with the respect that title deserves." Energy crackled along the lengths of her arms, sending the kitsune skittering back half a step from the burn that responded along his skin.

"Of course-" Arynna started to speak, but was cut off.

"I will not be a problem, and I will not be sent away like a child." Kagome shouted the last word, nearly startling herself. The group gathered in front of her said nothing. Kurama's fingers once again started running up and down her spine, soothing.

"Of course, Kagome." Arynna murmured, eyes almost averted. "I'm sorry that Sesshomaru felt the need to send you out."

"I'm sorry." Kagome murmured, dropping her head to stare at the marbel floor of the hallway. "I didn't mean to-"

"Yes you did, and it was glorious." Kurama interupted. "We're leaving." He glared hard at the tai-youkai. He placed a hand on the small of the miko's back, gently guiding her from the room. It would be a long, quiet walk through the crowd of dancing demons, and an even longer one when InuYasha insisted upon seeing them to the gate. Kagome kept her head high, almost relishing in the power that seemed to come from telling the Lord of the West exactly where he could get off.

The large iron gates of the Western castle closed behind her, InuYasha watching from between two of the bars. The hanyou had grown in the five hundred years since Kagome had first fallen down the well, and the pathetic image he made leaning between two of the bars, ears angled down, would have been too much for the miko had she turned to look behind her.

As it was, she didnt'.

And it was that decision, that would make all the difference for her future.

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"You were good back there, Lady of All Times." Youko nearly purred in her ear as they walked companionably through the tall grass across a long plain.

"I was angry." She replied, eyes going up to watch the sky. Over the years it had become a habit, not only to find her location, but to tie herself to the future world. "I shouldn't have snapped at Sesshomaru." Kurama didn't reply, he simply made a non-commital tone in the back of his throat. "I shouldn't have..." She let her words trail off for a moment. "Don't call me that anymore." She murmured, glancing across the spare foot and a half between them.

"Why's that?" The kitsune sent a knowing smile back at her. She didnt' respond. "We'll think of a new one." He promised, watching as she kept wandering through the tall grass. The wind swept aross the plain, sending both her hair and her dress dancing off to one side. Kurama watched her walk for a moment, and if pressed, he might admit that the image she made, pale with the emerald green dress shining in the moonlight, was more striking than anything he'd ever seen in his life.

**Author's Note:** Well guys. I had a faster turn around time than the last chapter. I know it isn't very long, but I wanted these two scenes to be stand alone.


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